Branch NEWSBRIEF Hon. Secretary: Jim Davies
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INTERNATIONAL MILITARY MUSIC SOCIETY UK (Founder) Branch NEWSBRIEF Hon. Secretary: Jim Davies, Amberstone, Pyrford Road, Pyrford GU22 8UP Tel: 01932 355135 + email: [email protected] April 2011 Dear IMMS UK (Founder) Branch Member and Corporate Member, I do hope the following news will be of interest to you; please pass on this information to other IMMS members you may know who do not have access to Email. We regret to record the death, on 21 March, of Lieutenant-Colonel (Rtd) George Evans OBE, President Emeritus of our UK (Founder) Branch. As Director of Music at The Royal Military School of Music, Colonel George was instrumental in arranging that our branch meetings should take place at Kneller Hall. In his role as Branch President he maintained a close interest in Branch matters, in recognition of which he was appointed President Emeritus when he relinquished the presidency. The Colonel’s funeral was private; a memorial service is to be arranged and details will be announced in due course. A full obituary will appear in the June issue of our Newsletter. 1. Tuesday 26 April Lance Corporal Rachel Smith of the Band of the Coldstream Guards writes to remind me that the next recital at the Guards Chapel is on Tuesday 26 April at 13 05; it will feature two fantastic musicians, David Jones of the Welsh Guards Band accompanied by Emily Barker of the Irish Guards Band, playing works for marimba and vibraphone by Ney Rosauro, Christopher Norton, Ross Edwards and others. Rachel looks forward to welcoming you to the Guards Chapel, and hopes you will join her and her colleagues after the concert for light refreshments in the Guards Museum. 2. Friday 29 April On 1 April the Ministry of Defence released the details and range of ceremonial military personnel who will take part in the wedding of HRH Prince William of Wales and Miss Catherine Middleton on Friday 29 April. For your interest and information, a summary of the press release follows: Queen’s Guard Doc: IMMS Newsbrief, 2011 April 1 The 1 st Bn Irish Guards will be providing the Queen’s Guard at Buckingham Palace, St James’s Palace and the Tower of London throughout the day. The Guard will turn out of the departure of the Royal Family from Buckingham Palace to Westminster Abbey. Guard of Honour A Guard of Honour comprising three officers and 101 other ranks from the Welsh Guards will be positioned in the forecourt of Buckingham Palace for the return of the members of the Royal Family. Street Liners More than 1,000 military personnel and military musicians will line the route from Westminster Abbey to Buckingham Palace. They will be made up of officers and other ranks from - Royal Navy HMS Astute , HMS Campbelton , HMS Chatham , HMS Cumberland , HMS Daring , HMS Dauntless , HMS Diamond , HMS Edinburgh , HMS Gloucester , HMS Illustrious , HMS Liverpool, HMS Monmouth , HMS Montrose , HMS Neptune , HMS Northumberland , HMS Vanguard , HMS York , RNAS Culdrose, RNAS Yeovilton, elements from Fleet Headquarters and Deference Equipment and Support, Bristol Army Nijmegen Company, Grenadier Guards, 7 Company Coldstream Guards, F Company Scots Guards, 1 st Bn Welsh Guards, 2 nd Bn The Princess of Wales’s Royal Regiment Royal Air Force RAF Benson, RAF Chicksands, RAF Coningsby, RAF Cosford, RAF Cottesmore, RAF Cranwell, RAF Digby, RAF Fylingdales, RAF Halton, RAF High Wycombe, RAF Honington, RAF Kinloss, RAF Leeming, RAF Lossiemouth, RAF Lyneham, RAF Marham, RAF Odiham, RAF personnel from Permanent Joint Headquarters Northwood, RAF Scampton, RAF Shawbury, RAF St Athan, RAF Swanwick, RAF Valley, RAF Waddington, RAF Wittering, Queen’s Colour Squadron, Defence School of Languages Beaconsfield, Joint Service Unit Cheltenham, Ministry of Defence Hospital Unit Northallerton, MOD Hospital Unit Peterborough, MoD Abbeywood, RAF personnel from the Defence College of Policing and Guarding Southwick Park. Bands and Musicians Royal Navy Parliament Square – The Band of HM Royal Marines, Collingwood Army On the forecourt of Buckingham Palace – the Band of the Welsh Guards Along the route – At Marlborough Road – The Band of the Grenadier Guards. At Duke of York Steps – The Band of the Coldstream Guards. At Horse Guards – The Band of the Scots Guards and the Corps of Drums, Welsh Guards. By the Cenotaph – The Corps of Drums, The Princess of Wales’s Royal Regiment. Inside Westminster Abbey : 8 Household Cavalry State Trumpeters, drawn equally from The Life Guards and the Blues and Royals Royal Air Force At Horse Guards Avenue/Whitehall - The Central Band of the Royal Air Force Inside Westminster Abbey – 8 RAF Fanfare trumpeters Path Lining outside Westminster Abbey after Service Personnel from each of the three Services will form a Path Lining party for when the couple leave Westminster Abbey. They are being chosen from a combination of those with a personal connection to Prince William, and those who have given an outstanding contribution to their service. Sovereign’s Escort and Captain’s Escort The Life Guards and Blues and Royals of the Household Cavalry Mounted Regiment will form a Sovereign’s Escort for Her Majesty The Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh, and a Doc: IMMS Newsbrief, 2011 April 2 Captain’s Escort for the Bride and Groom, as the wedding party travels to Buckingham Palace from Westminster Abbey. This will involve some 160 horses. Flypast At 13 30 a flypast will take place over Buckingham Palace. This will consist of the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight’s Lancaster, a Spitfire and a Hurricane, followed 30 seconds after by two Typhoons and two Tornado GR4s in box formation. 3. Saturday 30 April The Band of the Scots Guards (Director of Music: Major D.D. Robertson) will be giving a concert in the Guards Chapel at Wellington Barracks on Saturday 30 April starting at 19 00. Admission to the concert is free, and there will be a retiring collection. 4. Thursday 5 May and Thursday 12 May The Royal Military School of Music, Kneller Hall, has extended an invitation to IMMS members to two Beating Retreats which are to take place at the School on Thursdays 5 and 12 May. These parades are a new introduction and they are formal assessments for the 3rd year Student Bandmasters. The assessments are over two evenings with two candidates each evening. The arrangements for the evenings are as follows: 18 00 - Warrant Officers', Sergeants' & Students' Mess Bar opens for pre retreat drinks. 18 25 - Move to the main square via Museum 18 30 - Candidate No. 1 Marches on (Beating Retreat No.1 on 5 May, No.3 on 12 May). 19 00 - Retreat ends, comfort break. 19 10 - Move to the main square via Museum. 19 15 - Candidate No. 2 Marches on (Beating Retreat No. 2 on 5 May, No.4 on 12 May). Both the Officers' Mess and the Warrant Officers', Sergeants' & Students' Mess have been invited so it is expected to be well attended. We must limit, therefore, the number of IMMS members who can attend each evening, and it may be necessary to limit attendance to one evening. It is unclear at this moment whether chairs will be laid out or if it will be standing spectators only. I will allocate places on a first-come first-served basis. As I do not have the daily opportunity to access e-mails, it would be immensely helpful if members would apply by post only, with the customary self-addressed envelope for reply . We are immensely grateful to Colonel Cuthbert Brown, Major Tim Arnold and WO1 Mark Wilson for their generous invitation to us to attend these Beat Retreats. 5. Tuesday 24 May to Thursday 26 May President and Mrs Obama will be making a State Visit to the United Kingdom between Tuesday 24 May and Thursday 26 May. 6. Sunday 5 June The Band of the American Army and the Band of The Coldstream Guards will be performing in The Guards Chapel, starting at 5pm. Admission will be £15, which includes a glass of wine. Tickets will be available by post from the Guards Toy Soldier Centre on 020 7976 0850, or in person from the Toy Soldier Centre or The Guards Doc: IMMS Newsbrief, 2011 April 3 Museum. For further information, telephone 020 7414 3428. A reminder on behalf of our Treasurer - should you have overlooked paying your membership subscription for 2011, which is now overdue, please send your cheque for £19 payable to IMMS UK Branch to Edgar Liddle, 38 Lennox Gardens, Linlithgow EH49 7QA. Thank you, in advance, for your continuing encouragement and support. Finally, Andy Smith was appointed as the Editor of our Newsletter in succession to Philip Mather at the Branch’s Annual General Meeting at Kneller Hall on 12 March. Like all good editors, Andy is welcoming articles, reviews, photographs, letters etc for inclusion; the copy date for the June issue is 15 April, although he may be able to consider contributions after that date - not forgetting, of course, members’ photographs of the Royal Wedding. Andy’s address is 24 Floral Court, Ashtead KT21 2JL – his e-mail address is [email protected] . Jim Davies, Hon. Secretary, IMMS UK (Founder) Branch. Doc: IMMS Newsbrief, 2011 April 4 .